Skincare for Beginners: when, what & how

Remember when I held the giveaway couple of weeks back? One of the requests was for an article on skincare for beginner. I aim to please, so here it is.

I’ll try to write it down as concise and short as possible, but knowing me, it’s hard to not get carried away and to get directly to the point.

Here goes.

it doesn’t have to get this complicated!

When do you need to start using skincare?

I think as soon as you see trouble in your skin, that’s a cue for your for start using product to help tackle this problem. Sometimes when you hit puberty say in your early teens you start noticing hormonal acne. In some other cases, genetic can causes severe skin condition like dehydration and eczema, like my daughter which not even 10 years old yet but her skin is dry like a dessert so she starts on using products to help with this condition to ease discomfort.

If you’re blessed with good skin, I say somewhere in your mid teen years you can start using simple skincare routine and don’t go too complicated. If you’re in your 20s you will definitely need to start taking care of your skin religiously.

What skincare products to use?

Early teen – if you’re outdoor a lot, start to use sunscreen and a mild face cleanser that is moisturising to clean it off once you’re home. In the morning you can just clean your face with water. I would go for creamy cleanser or gentle cream cleanser like the Cetaphil, Cerave or Avene. Just simple drugstore cleanser that is non stripping and not too expensive.

If you’re starting to have problematic skin – Pick a product that target your concern. For acne, get a spot treatment. For dehydration get a simple single ingredient oil or just a face oil that is hydrating such as rosehip oil that is both hydrating, soothing and helps to aid the healing process of the skin tissue. On top of that, don’t forget to cleanse your skin properly.

If you’re in your mid teen years want to start using skincare – follow the basic skincare steps that I will outline below, and keep it simple. Pick simple products, simple ingredients and don’t get too complicated too soon. Cherish your good skin for as long as possible. You just want to protect it. I will go to trusted dermocosmetic brands such as Avene, La Roche Posay, Vichy, etc. French brands are good at these sort of products.

Cleanse: if you’re still in your early teen, do a simple one step cleansing, but as you get older get used to the idea of double cleansing. Read more about double cleansing here and all about cleanser here (bahasa Indonesia).

Tone: after you cleanser your face you need to rehydrate and tone it so that we give back the hydration and balance the pH level. For younger skin, opt for toning with thermal spray like the one from Avene Thermal Spring Water, Bioderma Brume or Evian. There are plenty others in the market, take your pick. You can either spray it directly to the face and wipe it off with cotton pad or spray it to cotton pad and pat it to your skin. Never let thermal water spray dries completely in your skin as it will make your skin dry and hungry for more hydration. If you want to step up your game, choose a toner that is hydrating or that is also mildly exfoliating like CosRX AHA/BHA, Kiehl’s Cucumber toner, Thayer’s that have witch hazel, etc. But I would pick toner that is hydrating. If you’re already in your 20’s and starting to experience major changes in your skin due to external factor, consider double toning, but don’t over do it. Just introduce acid toner once or twice a week or as needed. More about exfoliating toner here.

Moisture: pick a moisturiser that is suitable for your skin, everyone needs moisturiser. Oily skin included. You just need to pick the right one for you. For drier skin, pick one with heavier texture whereas for oilier skin pick one that is oil-free or gel-based. As an alternative, for oilier skin, you might want to consider emulsion for day and night.

Protect: use SPF religiously, whatever age you are, as early as possible during day time. Pick broadspectrum sunscreen that offers protection from both UVA and UVB, which means there’s both SPF and PA written in the bottle. Go with SPF30 if you’re outdoor a lot and I would go maximum of SPF50, because the protection factor in SPF doesn’t immediately means a multiplication in protection effect. Reapply if your activities are mainly outdoor. SPF15 should be ok if your activities are mainly indoor.